Eraser moulding toy and method of forming an eraser

ABSTRACT

To provide an eraser moulding toy with which it is possible to mould an eraser having a coloured pattern or design, a plurality of thermofusible eraser members  1  of differing colours are placed in succession inside a moulding container  2  so as to form a required pattern or design etc., and the moulding container  2  is heated in order to fuse the surfaces of the eraser members  1  together to mould an eraser P having a coloured pattern or design in the mould shape of the container.

CROSS-REFERENCES TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 from JapanesePatent Application Serial No. 2008-308759 filed Apr. 4, 2008, thedisclosure of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to an eraser moulding toy, moreparticularly to a toy for moulding an eraser having a suitably colouredpattern or design, and a method of forming an eraser.

BACKGROUND

There are known toys for producing erasers, as presented in JapaneseUtility Model Registration No. 3142498, for example, in which clay whichhardens by heating is moulded into a required three-dimensional shapeusing a mould, and this clay moulding is received in a containertogether with a suitable amount of water and heated in a microwave ovento harden the clay moulding, whereby a three-dimensional eraser isproduced.

SUMMARY

Young children etc. are fond of coloured erasers having a suitablepattern or design, but it is not possible to obtain this kind of eraserhaving a pattern or design with conventional toys for producing erasers.

Furthermore, there are many different steps involved in producing theconventional eraser, including: kneading the clay, moulding the claywith a mould, impregnating the clay moulding in a container containingwater, and heating the moulding in a microwave oven, and therefore it isdifficult for young children etc. to easily prepare erasers.

The present invention therefore provides an eraser moulding toy withwhich an eraser having a coloured pattern or design can be mouldedsimply even by young children etc.

The main features of the eraser moulding toy according to the presentinvention lie in the fact that it comprises: a plurality of erasermembers made of thermofusible coloured synthetic resin, and a mouldingcontainer for housing the plurality of eraser members in a state ofcontact; and a plurality of different coloured eraser members are housedin the moulding container so that a required pattern or design is formedby the end faces thereof, and it is possible to mould an eraser in whichthe surfaces of the eraser members are fused together by heating themoulding container.

The eraser members are picked up one at a time using tweezers, forexample, and placed along the inner surface of the moulding container inan ordered fashion and a state of contact. In this process, differentcoloured eraser members are placed inside the moulding container insuccession in a required pattern or design etc. and received in themoulding container. By means of this, the required coloured pattern ordesign etc. is formed on the planar surface of the housed erasermembers, which have the required area, by the end faces of the erasermembers. The areas between the eraser members are then impregnated witha suitable amount of water, by dripping a suitable amount of water ontothe planar surface of the housed eraser members using a dropper, forexample. This water is heated to the required temperature so that thesurfaces of the eraser members fuse together, and an eraser having acoloured pattern or design is moulded in the mould shape of thecontainer.

According to the present invention, a plurality of eraser members madeof a thermofusible coloured synthetic resin are housed in the mouldingcontainer in a state of contact so as to form the required pattern ordesign etc., and the moulding container is heated to cause the surfacesof the eraser members to fuse together, whereby it is possible to mouldan eraser having a coloured pattern or design in a specific mouldedshape.

In this way, even young children etc. are easily capable of moulding theeraser having a pattern or design because the process to mould theeraser only involves an operation to place the plurality of erasermembers one at a time in the moulding container so that they are housedin a state of contact, and then heating; no especially difficultoperations are required.

Moreover, the required pattern or design etc. is gradually completedusing a process in which different coloured eraser members are housed ina state of contact in the moulding container, and therefore the youngchild etc. can be motivated to create the pattern or design etc., whichis a source of interest for the young child etc.

The present invention will be described in detail below by way ofnon-limiting examples with reference to the accompanying Figures, inwhich:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

Other features and advantages of the present eraser moulding toy andmethod of forming an eraser will be apparent from the ensuingdescription, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, inwhich:

FIG. 1 is an oblique view showing an example of an eraser moulding toyset according to the present invention;

FIG. 2A is a plan view of the design sheet;

FIG. 2B is an oblique view of the back face of the spacer;

FIG. 2C is an oblique view of the front face of the spacer;

FIG. 3A is a plan view of a design sheet;

FIG. 3B is an oblique view of a back face of a spacer;

FIG. 3C is an oblique view of a front face of a spacer;

FIG. 4A is a side view of moulding container;

FIG. 4B is an oblique view thereof;

FIG. 5 is an oblique view of an open moulding container;

FIG. 6 is a plan view seen from a lower side of the moulding containershown in FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a cross sectional view of an example of use of an erasermoulding toy where setting of a design sheet at an intermediate stage isshown;

FIG. 8 is an oblique view thereof, showing a housing of an erasermembers at an intermediate stage;

FIG. 9 is an oblique view thereof, showing supplying of water to areasbetween eraser members at an intermediate stage; and

FIG. 10 is an oblique view thereof, showing a demoulded state of amoulded eraser article.

As shown in FIG. 1, the eraser moulding toy of this mode of embodimentis arranged as a set comprising: a plurality of eraser members 1 havingthe same shape; a moulding container 2; a design sheet 3; a spacer 4;and tweezers 5, etc.

DESCRIPTION

A description will now be given, referring to embodiments of the presenteraser moulding toy and method of forming an eraser. While the claimsare not limited to such embodiments, an appreciation of various aspectsof the present eraser moulding toy and method of forming an eraser isbest gained through a discussion of various examples thereof.

The eraser members 1 are formed with a predetermined cross-sectionalshape using thermofusible coloured synthetic resin which allows thesemembers to be fused together by heating. The eraser members 1 are formedas the same shape, with a length corresponding to the thickness of theeraser P which is the final moulded article and the same suitablecross-sectional size (stick-shaped); the members have a square crosssection of small size, with sides of several mm, for example. This makesit possible to fuse the eraser members together by surface contact overa broader range and to fix them more securely compared with fusion usingpoint contact of spherical eraser members, for example.

Furthermore, the eraser members 1 may be moulded as single pieces, butin this mode of embodiment they are formed as linked pieces 11, each ofdiffering colour, in which a plurality of eraser members 1 of the samecolour are linked together in a strip shape of a specific length withthin parts la at the corners in cross section forming the boundariestherebetween which can be cut, and the eraser members are cut one at atime from the thin parts la when they are used.

The eraser members 1 should be made of a material which allows theclosely contacted surfaces thereof to fuse together under heatingproduced by a heater (e.g. a microwave oven) which will be describedlater; for example, it is possible to use a synthetic resin comprising:styrene-butadiene elastomer 65-70%; olefin 30-35%, in addition to around1% each of calcium carbonate, vegetable oil, mineral oil, non-metallicbinder and curing agent.

The moulding container 2 houses the eraser members 1 in a state ofcontact, and it is made of a heat-resistant synthetic resin which canwithstand heating by the heater, for example polyamide resin, polyimideresin, ABS resin, or a fluororesin.

The moulding container 2 comprises a container main body 21 which has amoulding part 22 of the required shape and which is open at the top inorder to house the eraser members 1 upright, as shown in FIGS. 4 to 7;and a cover member 23 which is pivotably linked to the peripheral sideof the container main body 21 by way of a hinge mechanism 24 and canclose the top opening of the moulding part 22.

In this mode of embodiment, the moulding part 22 is formed as a square,wherein one corner of the square is disposed on the side where the hingemechanism 24 is provided.

Furthermore, the container main body 21 is formed as a circular shapeoverall, in which the moulding part 22 is formed with a circular bottomplate 21 a to a specific height on the peripheral wall, and a flange 22a is formed as a circular plate concentric with the bottom plate 21 a atthe upper opening edge of the moulding part 22.

The cover member 23 is formed as a circular plate of substantially thesame diameter as the flange 22 a and overlies the flange 22 a of themoulding part 22.

The upper opening edge of the moulding part 22 is moulded with anobliquely bevelled shape, and a slightly protruding step part 23 a ofwhich the peripheral edge fits together with the bevelled mouldedportion 22 b at the upper opening edge is formed in the centre of thecover member 23 corresponding to the moulding part 22; this step part 23a enters the upper opening edge of the moulding part 22 so as to be ableto seal closed the inside of the moulding part 22.

Furthermore, a semiperipheral part of the moulding part 22 consists of amoveable frame 22A which can be detached from the container main body21. In this mode of embodiment, the half of the moulding part 22opposite the side close to the hinge mechanism 24 is separated from theflange 22 a along a diagonal line and constitutes the moveable frame 22Awhich has been separately moulded; the half which is on the side of thecontainer main body 21 close to the hinge mechanism 24 which is mouldedas a single piece with the bottom plate 21 a constitutes a fixed frame22B.

A positioning part 25 is formed on both sides of the section where themoveable frame 22A and the fixed frame 22B meet. The positioning partcomprises protrusions 25 a which protrude from a peripheral part of thecontainer main body 21 and grooves 25 b which are formed in a peripheralpart of the moveable frame 22A. The grooves 25 b can be engaged with theprotrusions 25 a in the plane of and perpendicular to the plane of thebottom plate 21 a of the container main body 21.

Furthermore, the outer edge at the bottom of the moveable frame 22A isformed as a flat, substantially semicircular surface which comes intosliding contact with the bottom plate 21 a of the container main body21.

The hinge mechanism 24 comprises a pair of brackets 24 a which projectfrom a peripheral part of the container main body 21 and an arm 24 bwhich projects from a peripheral part of the cover member 23; the arm 24b is pivotably linked to the brackets 24 a by way of a hinge pin 24 cwhich projects from the outer surface of the arms 24 b.

Furthermore, the hinge point of the hinge mechanism 24 is setsubstantially in the extension of the surface of the flange 22 a of themoulding part 22, and is designed so that the cover member 23 can comeinto parallel abutment with the surface of the flange 22 a when thecover member 23 is closed.

As described above in this mode of embodiment, a semiperipheral part ofthe moulding part 22 consists of the moveable frame 22A, and therefore amoveable frame fixing mechanism 26 is provided to restrict the play ofthe moveable frame 22A in the direction of detachment when the covermember 23 is closed. This moveable frame fixing mechanism 26 maycomprise a pair of latching grooves 26 b which are provided in theflange 22 a of the moveable frame 22A, and a pair of latchingprotrusions 26 a which project from the inner surface at the free end ofthe cover member 23 and are inserted into the latching grooves 26 b whenthe cover member 23 is closed, for example.

A latching member 27 for releasably locking the cover with a tonguepiece 23 b extending from the free end of the cover member 23 isprovided at a point opposite the side where the hinge mechanism 24 ofthe container main body 21 is arranged (the side where the cover member23 is joined).

This latching member 27 comprises a hinge pin 27 b, projecting from theouter faces of a pair of arm parts 27 a, which is pivotably linked to apair of brackets 27 c that project from a peripheral part of thecontainer main body 21; a hook part 27 d which is engageable with tonguepiece 23 b projecting from the free end of the cover member 23 isprovided at the free end of the latching member 27.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 7, the latching member 27 can act as astep for positioning the container main body 21 at the required angle ofinclination by pivoting of said latching member through approximately90° below the container main body 21, in order to restrict the pivotingof the container main body at the peripheral part thereof.

A plurality of heat-radiating fins 28 are then provided on the outersurface of the container main body 21 and the cover member 23. In thismode of embodiment, the heat-radiating fins 28 are formed on thecontainer main body 21 in a fine lattice shape on the lower surface andthe peripheral part thereof, i.e. on the lower surface of the bottomplate 21 a and between the bottom plate 21 a and the flange 22 a of themoulding part 22. Furthermore, the heat-radiating fins 28 are formed ina similar lattice shape on the upper surface of the cover member 23; theheat-radiating fins 28 of the cover member 23 are formed overall as anarcuate projecting surface, and are designed so that the overall shapeof the moulding container 2 when the cover member 23 is closed resemblesa circular dome from the outside.

The eraser members 1 are cut one at a time from the linked pieces 11 andhoused upright in the moulding part 22 of the moulding container 2 so asto describe the required pattern or design etc., and a design sheet 3 onwhich is printed a required pattern or design etc., as shown in FIGS. 2and 3, is used so that even a young child etc. can easily produce thispattern or design etc. by copying the pattern or design etc. on thedesign sheet 3.

The pattern or design etc. on the design sheet 3 is drawn in therequired colours on squares 31 which are inscribed over thecross-sectional shape of the eraser members 1 which are linked together;the design sheet 3 is positioned on the bottom surface of the mouldingpart 22, and eraser members 1 of differing colours are housed so as toreplicate the colouring of the squares 31, using these squares as areference.

A slit 29 is provided in a peripheral wall base part of the mouldingpart 22, as shown in FIG. 7, in order to position the design sheet 3 onthe bottom surface of the moulding part 22, and the design sheet 3 canbe inserted onto or removed from the bottom surface of the moulding part22 through this slit 29.

In this mode of embodiment, the slit 29 is formed between the lowersurface of the moveable frame 22A and the bottom plate 21 a in themoulding part 22, and the slit 29 is formed as a slightly larger gapthan the thickness of the design sheet 3 by adjusting the heightwiseposition of engagement in the vertical direction between the protrusions25 a and the grooves 25 b of the positioning part 25 of the moveableframe 22A. Furthermore, the design sheet 3 is inserted onto and removedfrom the bottom surface of the moulding part 22 by using the pair ofprotrusions 25 a, 25 a of the positioning part 25, which are positionedat both ends of the slit 29, as insertion guides.

Accordingly, the design sheet 3 is formed as a strip having a sheetwidth corresponding to the widthwise dimensions between the pair ofprotrusions 25 a, 25 a, and an insertion end 3 a thereof is formed as atriangular shape which corresponds to the shape of the inner surface ofthe peripheral wall of the fixed frame 22B; the pattern or design etc.is printed on one or both faces at the triangular insertion end 3 a.

The mould size of the moulding part 22 can be changed by means of thespacer 4 which can be inserted or removed along the inner surface of theperipheral wall of the moulding part 22; for example, the spacer 4 inthis mode of embodiment is formed as an L-shape which follows the innersurface of the peripheral wall of the fixed frame 22B, and this spacer 4is inserted or removed along the inner surface of the peripheral wall ofthe fixed frame 22B.

In this way, the mould size of the moulding part 22 can be changed bymeans of the spacer 4, and therefore various types of design sheet 3having different sizes of the pattern or design etc. printed at theinsertion end 3 a thereof can be arranged, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3.

Furthermore, either of the following methods may be adopted when thedesign sheet 3 is positioned on the bottom surface of the moulding part22: either the moveable frame 22A is set in alignment with the fixedframe 22B and the design sheet is inserted from the slit 29; or themoveable frame 22A is removed and the insertion end 3 a of the designsheet 3 is aligned with the inner surface of the peripheral wall of thefixed frame 22B and the design sheet is positioned on the bottom plate21 a, then the moveable frame 22A is set in alignment with the fixedframe 22B from above. In either case, a sheet pressing piece 22 c havinga small protrusion 22 d on the lower surface thereof for lightlypressing the surface of the design sheet 3, as shown in FIG. 7, isformed at the outer peripheral edge at the bottom surface of themoveable frame 22A, arranged so as to project between the pair ofbrackets 27 c, 27 c to which the latching member 27 is linked, in orderto prevent the design sheet 3 from becoming offset in the direction ofwithdrawal from the slit 29 while the eraser members 1 are being placedinside.

The process for moulding an eraser having a coloured pattern or designusing the abovementioned toy set will be described below in detail.

As shown in FIG. 7, the cover member 23 of the moulding container 2 isfirst of all opened, and the latching member 27 is pivoted throughapproximately 90° below the container main body 21, as far as therestriction position.

By means of this, the container main body 21 can be staticallypositioned on a table or desk etc. at a specific angle of inclination,using the latching member 27 as a step.

Next, the moveable frame 22A of the moulding part 22 is either removedor left in place, and the required design sheet 3 is positioned on thebottom surface of the moulding part 22 from the slit 29 (see FIG. 7).

Eraser members 1 are then cut one at a time from the linked pieces 11,and picked up using the tweezers 5 and received upright on the mouldingpart 22, as shown in FIG. 8. At this point, the container main body 21is statically positioned at a specific angle of inclination with acorner part of the fixed frame 22B tilted downwards, and therefore theeraser members 1 are received in the moulding part 22 with differentcoloured members being selected to replicate the colour of the squareson the design sheet, using the squares as a reference, and taking thiscorner part as the starting point for placing the members inside.

By means of this, the end faces of the eraser members 1 form the samepattern or design etc. which is printed on the design sheet 3, andtherefore the design sheet 3 is withdrawn to outside the moulding part22 from the slit 29.

A suitable amount of water is impregnated in the areas between theeraser members 1 by dripping a suitable amount of water onto the planarsurface of the housed plurality of eraser members 1, as shown in FIG. 9,using a dropper which is not depicted, or by wetting the planar surfaceof the housed members using a spray.

Next, the cover member 23 is closed and fixed to the container main body21 by means of the latching member 27; the top opening of the mouldingpart 22 is sealed closed, and the moulding container 2 is introducedinto a heater (not depicted) for heating. It should be noted that byclosing the cover member 23, the water which has been dropped on theplanar surface of the housed eraser members is pressured so as topenetrate the contact surfaces between the eraser members 1.

The eraser members are heated for 40 seconds at 730 W or 60 seconds at500 W, for example, and the thermal induction of the water moleculespresent between the surfaces of the eraser members 1 promotes heatingbetween the surfaces of the eraser members 1 so that the surfaces of theeraser members 1 are fused together.

Then, once the heating is complete, the moulding container 2 is removedfrom the heater and allowed to cool naturally, after which the covermember 23 is opened and the moulding is demoulded, and the mouldederaser article P which is block-shaped and has the required colouredpattern or design on both surfaces is complete.

This moulded eraser article P can be easily demoulded by removing themoveable frame 22A.

When the eraser is moulded, if a required part of the eraser members 1which are housed is formed by a core S comprising a material which doesnot fuse with the eraser members 1, for instance glass or metal, then itis possible to form a moulded eraser article P′ having a pattern ordesign with a through-hole S′ at the required portion by removing thiscore S after the heating and demoulding.

As described above, according to the eraser moulding toy of this mode ofembodiment, it is possible to mould a block-shaped eraser P having acoloured pattern or design in a specific moulded shape by housing aplurality of eraser members 1 made of thermofusible coloured syntheticresin and having the same shape in a moulding container 2, so as to formthe required pattern or design etc. with different colours, and byimpregnating the areas between the eraser members 1 with a suitableamount of water and heating this water to the required temperature sothat the surfaces of the eraser members 1 are fused together. In thisway, even young children etc. are easily capable of moulding the eraserP having a pattern or design because the process to mould the eraser Ponly involves an operation to place the plurality of eraser members 1one at a time in the moulding container 2 so that they are housed in astate of contact, and then impregnating the areas between the erasermembers 1 with a suitable amount of water, followed by heating; noespecially difficult operations are required.

Moreover, the required pattern or design etc. is gradually completedusing a process in which different coloured eraser members 1 are housedin a state of contact in the moulding container 2, and therefore theyoung child etc. can be motivated to create the pattern or design etc.,which is a source of interest for the young child etc.

In this mode of embodiment especially, the moulding container 2comprises a heat-resistant container main body 21 having a moulding part22 which is open at the top for housing the plurality of eraser members1 upright, and a cover member 23 which is pivotably linked to thecontainer main body 21 and can close the top opening of the mouldingpart 22; the eraser members 1 can be housed upright in succession insidethe moulding part 22, and the planar surface of the housed erasermembers can be wetted with water before the cover member 23 is closed,and the moulding container 2 can be heated, and therefore even youngchildren etc. can easily house the eraser members 1 and heat theassembly.

Furthermore, the plurality of heat-radiating fins 28 are provided on theouter surface of the container main body 21 and of the cover member 23,and therefore the heat-radiating effect of the moulding container 2 isincreased, so the cooling time for the moulding container 2 and themoulded article is shortened, which makes it possible to shorten themoulding cycle, and it is possible to prevent the moulding time becomingunnecessarily long.

Moreover, the heat-radiating fins 28 are formed in a lattice shape, andif a young child etc. grasps the moulding container 2 with his or herhand, the contact area with the child's fingers is minimized, andtherefore it is possible to eliminate the danger of burns when themoulding container 2 is removed from the heater after the heating isfinished.

Furthermore, if the latching member 27, which locks the cover in orderto fix the cover member 23 to the container main body 21 once said covermember has been closed, is pivoted below the container main body 21,this member serves as a step for statically positioning the containermain body 21 at the required angle of inclination, and therefore it ispossible to easily place the eraser members 1 inside the container mainbody 21 without the eraser members falling over, by placing the erasermembers 1 upright with the container main body 21 in an inclined leaningstate.

Furthermore, a semiperipheral part of the moulding part 22 of thecontainer main body 21 consists of a moveable frame 22A which isdetachable from the container main body 21, and therefore this offersthe advantage that the moulded eraser P can be easily demoulded byremoving this moveable frame 22A.

In addition, the design sheet 3, which is inserted onto and removed fromthe bottom surface inside the moulding part 22 from a slit 29 in theperipheral wall base part of the moulding part 22, has the requiredpattern or design etc. printed thereon, and this pattern or design etc.is drawn in the required colours on squares 31 which are inscribed overthe cross-sectional shape of the eraser members 1 which are linkedtogether, and therefore if the design sheet 3 is used so that the erasermembers 1 of differing colours are housed to replicate the colouring ofthe squares 31, taking the squares 31 as a reference, it is possible toeasily produce a pattern or design etc. in the same colours as thedesign sheet 3 using the eraser members 1.

Furthermore, the mould size of the moulding part 22 can be changed bymeans of the spacer 4 which can be inserted or removed along the innersurface of the peripheral wall of the moulding part, and thereforevarious different sizes of eraser P can be freely obtained using thisspacer 4.

The eraser members 1 are linked together in a strip shape with the thinparts 1 a at the boundaries to allow eraser members 1 of the same colourto be cut into a plurality of members, and the eraser members are cutone at a time from the thin parts 1 a when they are used, and thereforethe plurality of eraser members 1 can be held neatly together in acompact fashion, and this makes it possible to easily house the toyafter use because the packaging for the toy set is obviously morecompact.

Furthermore, when the eraser members 1 are received in the mouldingcontainer 2, if a required part of the eraser members which are housedis formed by a core S comprising a material which does not fuse with theeraser members 1 and the core S is removed after moulding is complete,then it is possible to form a moulded eraser article P′ having a patternor design with a through-hole S′ at the required portion, and thereforeit is possible to produce a hole in the shape of the core S at a portioncorresponding to the eye, mouth or nose etc. of a character from apopular cartoon, or similar, which is of interest to young children etc.

It should be noted that an example has been presented in this mode ofembodiment in which the moulding part 22 is square, but the mouldingpart is not limited to polygonal shapes, and it is feasible to set anyshape.

Furthermore, a suitable amount of water is impregnated in the areasbetween the eraser members 1, but water does not need to be impregnatedif the eraser members are made of a material (a material containingwater) which allows the eraser members to be fused together by heatingat a specific temperature.

An example has been presented here of a case in which the plurality oferaser members 1 have the same shape with the same length andcross-sectional size, but it is also possible, depending on the case, tohouse some eraser members with different lengths and cross-sectionalsizes. It is possible to obtain a non-planar eraser P by housing erasermembers of differing lengths.

In addition, the eraser members 1 are not limited to a squarecross-sectional shape, provided that the cross-sectional shape allowsthe surfaces of the eraser members to come into contact with one anotherwhen they are housed inside the moulding part 22.

The preceding description has been presented only to illustrate anddescribe exemplary embodiments of the present eraser moulding toy andmethod of forming an eraser. It is not intended to be exhaustive or tolimit the invention to any precise form disclosed. It will be understoodby those skilled in the art that various changes may be made andequivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departingfrom the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may bemade to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of theinvention without departing from the essential scope. Therefore, it isintended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodimentdisclosed as the best mode contemplated for carrying out this invention,but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within thescope of the claims. The invention may be practiced otherwise than isspecifically explained and illustrated without departing from its spiritor scope.

1. An eraser moulding toy comprising: a plurality of eraser members madeof thermofusible coloured synthetic resin, and a moulding container forhousing the plurality of eraser members in a state of contact; whereinthe toy is configured such that a plurality of different coloured erasermembers may be placed in the moulding container so that a requiredpattern or design is formed by the end faces thereof, and it is possibleto mould an eraser in which the surfaces of the eraser members are fusedtogether by heating the moulding container.
 2. The eraser moulding toyaccording to claim 1, wherein the surfaces of the eraser members arefused together by impregnating the areas between the eraser members withwater and heating this water.
 3. The eraser moulding toy according toclaim 2, wherein the moulding container comprises: a container main bodyhaving a moulding part of the required shape of the eraser to be formed,which is open at the top and houses the eraser members, and a covermember which is pivotably linked to the container main body so as to beable to close the top opening of the moulding part; and the mouldingcontainer is heat resistant such that the container may be heated inorder to heat the water inside the moulding container in order to fusethe eraser members.
 4. The eraser moulding toy according to claim 3,wherein a plurality of heat-radiating fins are provided on the outersurface of the container main body and the cover member; wherein,optionally, the heat-radiating fins are formed in a lattice shape. 5.The eraser moulding toy according to claim 3 or 4, characterized in thatthe container main body is provided with an engageable latching memberat the free end of the cover member, the latching member being pivotablylinked to a part of the container main body opposite the side where thecover member is linked; and the latching member is configured such thatit can act as a step for positioning the container main body at therequired angle of inclination by pivoting of said latching member belowthe container main body.
 6. The eraser moulding toy according to claims3 or 4, wherein at least one of: a semiperipheral part of the mouldingpart consists of a moveable frame which can be detached from thecontainer main body; and the mould size of the moulding part can bechanged using a spacer which can be inserted into or removed from themoulding part along an inner surface on the peripheral wall thereof. 7.An eraser moulding toy according to claims 3 or 4, characterized in thata slit is provided in a peripheral wall base part of the moulding part,and a design sheet on which is printed a required pattern or design etc.can be inserted onto or removed from the bottom surface inside themoulding part through this slit; wherein a pattern or design may bedrawn on the design sheet in the required colours on squares which areinscribed over the cross-sectional shape of the eraser members which areto be linked together; and eraser members of differing colours may beplaced so as to replicate this colouring, using the design sheet as areference.
 8. A method of forming an eraser, comprising: placing aplurality of different coloured eraser members made of thermofusiblecoloured synthetic resin in a moulding container configured to house theplurality of eraser members in a state of contact so that a requiredpattern or design is formed by the end faces thereof; and fusingtogether the surfaces of the eraser members by heating the mouldingcontainer.
 9. The method of forming an eraser according to claim 8,wherein the method comprises impregnating the areas between the erasermembers with water and fusing together the surfaces of the erasermembers by heating the water.
 10. The method of forming an eraseraccording to claim 9, wherein the moulding container comprises: acontainer main body having a moulding part of the required shape of theeraser to be formed, which is open at the top and houses the erasermembers, and a cover member which is pivotably linked to the containermain body; the moulding container is heat resistant; and the methodcomprises closing the top opening of the moulding part and heating themoulding container in order to heat the water inside the mouldingcontainer in order to fuse the eraser members.
 11. The method of formingan eraser according to claim 10, wherein the container main body isprovided with an engageable latching member at the free end of the covermember, the latching member being pivotably linked to a part of thecontainer main body opposite the side where the cover member is linked;and the method comprises using the latching member as a step forpositioning the container main body at the required angle of inclinationby pivoting of said latching member below the container main body. 12.The method of forming an eraser according to claim 10 or 11, wherein themethod comprises at least one of: detaching a moveable frame that is asemiperipheral part of the moulding part from the container main body inorder to remove the eraser formed in the moulding part; and inserting aspacer into the moulding part along an inner surface along theperipheral wall thereof in order to change the size of the mouldingpart.
 13. The method of forming an eraser according to any one of claims10 or 11, wherein a slit is provided in a peripheral wall base part ofthe moulding part; and the method comprises inserting a design sheet onwhich is printed a required pattern or design etc. onto the bottomsurface inside the moulding part through the slit; wherein a pattern ordesign is drawn on the design sheet in the required colours on squareswhich are inscribed over the cross-sectional shape of the eraser memberswhich are to be linked together; and eraser members of differing coloursare placed so as to replicate this colouring, using the design sheet asa reference.
 14. The method of forming an eraser according to any one ofclaims 8 to 11, further comprising providing a plurality of erasermembers of the same colour, linked together with thin parts at theboundaries which can be cut, and cutting the eraser members one at atime from these thin parts when they are required.
 15. The method offorming an eraser according to any one of claims 8 to 11, furthercomprising placing in the moulding container a core comprising amaterial which does not fuse with the eraser members in the position ofone or more of the eraser members.